In a two-hour summit on Monday, South Korean President Roh Moo-hyun and Japanese Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi devoted one hour and fifty minutes to the discussions of history disputes.  

Still, they failed to make progress on the issue that has strained bilateral ties.

In a joint press conference after the meeting, Roh only announced a two-point agreement the two countries clinched prior to the summit by their diplomatic authorities.

Koizumi agreed to consider building an alternative memorial for the Yasukuni Shrine honoring Japan's war dead, including Class-A war criminals of World War II, in consideration of the public opinion in Japan, according to Roh.

The agreement, however, is not seen as something of a breakthrough in the worsening ties between the two neighbors.

During a summit with former South Korean President Kim Dae-jung in October 2001, Koizumi also made similar remarks that Tokyo would consider building a new memorial facility to replace Yasukuni Shrine, but with no follow-up actions.

Roh himself also labeled the agreement as a "lower level" one since the Japanese side was unwilling to give a firm promise on the issue.

Koizumi's continuous respect visits to the shrine have triggered strong protests from South Korea and other Asian countries that suffered greatly from Japan's military aggression decades ago.

During the meeting, the two sides insisted on their respective views over the issue of Yasukuni visit.

Roh stated the Yasukuni issue is the core of the South Korea-Japan relations, urging Koizumi to make a "courageous decision" on it, while Koizumi defended himself, saying he visits the shrine not to beautify or justify the war, but to mourn the dead in the war.

Seoul and Tokyo also agreed prior to the summit to launch a second joint research committee to investigate the history issue and establish a task force to develop joint school textbooks for use in both countries.

Earlier this year, Japan authorized a new version of school textbooks that whitewashes Japan's aggression past, which further marred ties between the two neighbors that had originally planned to jointly celebrate in 2005 the 30th anniversary of establishment of diplomatic ties.

The right-wing school textbooks touched South Korean people's nerves mainly because they include content backing Japan's claim to a group of controversial islets located in the Sea of Japan.

The islets, called Dokdo in Korean and Takeshima in Japanese, have been the fuse of disputes between the two nations.

Earlier this year, when Japanese Shimane Prefecture Council approved an ordinance to designate every February 22 as "Takeshima Day" so as to promote public awareness of Japan's claim to the islets, anti-Japan sentiment was prevalent in South Korea.

Seoul insists Dokdo, which is under effectual control of South Korea by deployment of a garrison of South Korean coast guards, is South Korean territory.

However, during Monday's meeting, neither side raised the sensitive territory issue.

The solemnity of the summit was also reflected in the meeting venue and Roh and Koizumi's attires.

While two previous working Seoul-Tokyo summits in 2004 were both held on resort islands, this time, Roh and Koizumi met at a much more serious venue: South Korean Presidential Office, and both of them were formally dressed in business suits and ties.

When the meeting was going on, anti-Japan protests were also staged in front of the Japanese Embassy in Seoul and near the South Korean Presidential Office. Demonstrators criticized Koizumi for his Yasukuni Shrine visit, supported South Korean sovereignty over Dokdo, and demanded compensations for the South Korean "comfort women" who were forced to provide sexual service to Japanese troops during World War II.

Monday's summit also fell hopes of various political parties in South Korea, who said they had expected the meeting to help amend ties, but only found it reaffirmed the two sides' differences over the perception of history.

(Xinhua News Agency June 21, 2005)